Service Animals

In the video above, Jill Brondolo talks about using a guide dog

Guidelines for Service Animals on Campus

Florida Atlantic University permits the use of service animals as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act and Florida Statute. The animal must be trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual or other mental disability. The work or tasks performed by a service animal must be directly related to the individual’s disability. Examples of work or tasks include, but are not limited to, assisting individuals who are blind or have low vision with navigation and other tasks, alerting individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing to the presence of people or sounds, providing non-violent protection or rescue work, pulling a wheelchair, assisting an individual during a seizure and helping persons with psychiatric and neurological disabilities by preventing or interrupting impulsive or destructive behaviors.

FAU cannot require documentation, such as proof of certification, training or licensed as a service animal. We cannot make inquiries about a service animal when it is readily apparent the animal is trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability.
When a person with a service animal enters a public facility or place of public accommodation, the person cannot be asked about the nature or extent of his/her disability. Only two questions may be asked:

Is the animal required because of a disability?
What work/task has the animal been trained to perform to mitigate your disability?

FAU reserves the right to exclude or remove any animal from the premises, including a service animal, if the animal’s behavior poses a direct threat to the health and safety of others. Allergies and fear of animals are not valid reasons for denying access or refusing service to an individual with a service animal. If an animal is properly excluded we must give the individual with a disability the opportunity or participate in the service, program, or activity without having the service animal on the premises.

Process for Service Animals

To bring a service animal on campus, a student must complete the following steps:

The Service Animal Veterinarian Verification Form needs to be completed by the animal's treating veterinarian and submitted to SAS.
Contact the SAS Director or Associate Director to schedule an appointment to verify the service animal and to discuss possible academic accommodations and services that are available.
If the student is living in campus housing, a letter will be provided to Housing to verify that the student has a service animal.
Remember the service animal's vaccinations have to be updated within a certain timeframe (as indicated by the Veterinarian) and it is the student’s responsibility to submit an updated Service Animal Veterinarian Verification Form within one week of the date of expiration.
For Housing, a Service Animal Veterinarian Verification Form must be submitted to SAS for each contractual year in Housing.